On a sunny, Tuesday afternoon with perfect playing conditions, the men's tennis team was unable to pull through a close 5-2 match against West Virginia at the Topliff tennis courts.
The men, who lost all three doubles matches, started the singles out strong, only to lose three tight three-set matches.
"We were still in it with 15 minutes to go," Coach Chuck Kinyon said. "It would have been a huge victory, but all of our guys competed well."
The loss was particularly upsetting because it will greatly affect the team's chances for a bid in the NCAA tournament.
"A lot of us took the loss really hard," said Mike DeGuzman '94, who along with Randy White '94 scored the two points for the Big Green. "The main thing for us is to keep competing. We just have to keep playing tough."
The men, who travel to Brown and Yale this weekend, will work hard to improve the doubles playing, Kinyon said.
"We had played good doubles against Navy and won all three matches, but Tuesday it was subpar," Kinyon said. "We have to work on that because it is very difficult having to go in winning four out of the six singles matches."
This weekend's matches and the match next Tuesday at Cambridge against Harvard will determine the Big Green's post-season playing opportunities.
"We have to win all three matches to make it to the NCAA's," Kinyon said. "We're definitely a long shot, but everyone is playing well. Our goal was to improve as a team, and we're playing a little bit better every match."
